


Safety in Smoke

by dragonflythearchive (dragonflythemuse)



Category: One Piece
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anal Fingering, Anal Play, Anal Sex, Angst, Blow Jobs, Cheating, Death, Friends With Benefits, Friends to Lovers, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Cheating, M/M, Murder Mystery, Public Blow Jobs, Smut, just wanted to throw that out there, there is no detailed description or an actual scene, to clarify the rape is a few mentions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-22
Updated: 2020-06-16
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:22:16
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24316510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dragonflythemuse/pseuds/dragonflythearchive
Summary: Detective Hunter “Smoker” White, of an average sized town called Lancaster, has been assigned a case of a string of murderers that have been committed over the span of the year. The town is struck with fear and he’s on a short time limit. Little does he know that the barista at the local coffee shop leads him to further clues that could lead him closer to the killer. However, their lives could potentially be in danger as their relationship strays further than it was ever meant to.This work has been abandoned and discontinued.
Relationships: Smoker (One Piece) & Original Character(s), Smoker (One Piece) & Original Male Characters, Smoker (One Piece)/Original Character(s), Smoker (One Piece)/Original Male Character(s)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5





	1. The Latest Body

**Author's Note:**

> **Warnings for this chapter:**  
> \- Graphic mentions of violence  
> \- Death  
> \- Mentions of rape  
> \- Mentions of abuse

The forest was damp and slick with rain. The steep hill the police department of Lancaster found themselves in was difficult to navigate without slipping and falling. The scene was increasingly more depressing given the weather. Detective Hunter “Smoker” White thought a murder scene couldn’t get much worse, yet here he was. He put his hands in his pockets as he walked from his car to the path that led to the body discovered earlier. 

He approached the slim coroner examining the body. The hood of his jacket was pulled over his head to protect his glasses from the rain and he turned at the sound of footsteps approaching. Smoker always found him somewhat weird, but he was damn good at his job, so he didn’t let it bother him too much.

“Law,” Smoker spoke rigidly. 

“Smoker.” 

“What do we have?”

“Male. Late 20’s, maybe early 30’s. I would probably take a bet on 29. He was found out here naked by some hunters. His death, as far as I can tell, was the same as the last one.” 

“Know his name?”

“Nah. There wasn’t anything found with his body.”

Smoker exhaled, his breath appearing in the cold air. “Run me through the details, if you don’t mind.”

“We got multiple lacerations to the skin, especially the wrists. There’s a deep stab wound in the chest, to the left of the sternum. I can’t tell how deep it is right now, but I’ll be able to look more in my analysis later. But I’m willing to bet it went straight to the heart. I checked his anal cavity and I was really hoping it wouldn’t be the case.”

“Rape?”

“For sure. Extremely bruised, a lot of trauma around his groin. However, I can’t find any fluids or hair here. Especially since it’s been raining. It could have washed away. I can’t even tell how much blood he could have lost with the rain. With all of the gashes, I’m going to assume this was a murder committed out of a well controlled rage. All of the bruises back up that theory too. However, if we’re going off of the previous murders, I’m assuming the main cause of death was blood loss. He was left to bleed out and die.”

“Like the last one?”

“Like the last one.”

“That’s the biggest problem with this one.” Smoker raised an eyebrow for Law to continue. “This murder was a lot cleaner than the last. Not just because it’s raining. Whoever the murderer is knows what they’re doing and they’re getting better and better at it.”

Smoker rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Okay. Bag him up. When should I be expecting the finished report?”

“Get me a coffee and I’ll have it done before lunch tomorrow.”

Smoker rolled his eyes. “Alright. I’ll be at the coroners in an hour.”

Law nodded. “Hopefully I’ll have some answers to give you more work by the time you get there.”

Smoker waved, ignoring his final comment. He got into his car and drove away from the scene, already drained from the resurgence of murders that were never ending.


	2. You make the best coffee

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Enter Rowan Tosaka, a barista at the local coffee shop Smoker frequents. He's cute, enthusiastic, and taken. But he doesn't seem to be happy about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Warnings for this chapter:**  
> \- Mentions of physical and psychological abuse

Smoker pulled into the parking lot of a rather quiet part of town. It was his favorite part of Lancaster. The coffee shop he frequented was a block away from the parking lot and during the fall and winter, it was always a beautiful site. He was looking forward to the Christmas decorations to be put up at the end of November.

He put out his cigarette once he approached the cafe and he stepped inside. Soft piano was being played, but it wasn’t overwhelming. Smoker was greeted by the scent of freshly brewed coffee and the warmth of a comforting local cafe. He walked over to the bar where a friendly face looked over. When they stood, you could see the vitiligo dapple their skin with different colors. One of his eyes was milky and cloudy. Smoker never asked why that was the case, but he didn’t think they were that close. To top it all off, the man hobbled on a rather cheap looking prosthetic leg. He was very Smoker's type.

“Oh!” said the face. “Hi, Smoker.” 

“Hey Rowan. I’m not bothering you am I?”

“You could never bother me, you know I love your company. I’m about to start my break. Do you want to sit with me for a bit?”

“Of course. It’s been awhile since we’ve chatted last, hasn’t it?”

“It has. Your usual?”

“Yes please.”

“Okay! Go get a seat and I’ll be right with you.”

It took Rowan only a few moments to make a mug of coffee and sit with Smoker and he turned his cap backwards. Smoker took a quick sip of the coffee Rowan had brought him and he hummed with delight. 

“You always make the best coffee.”

“Aw, thank you, Smoker. I work hard on every drink.” He took a sip of his own drink. “So nice of you to come visit me. I’ve missed having these talks with you.” Rowan reached a hand out and squeezed Smoker’s. The detective made eye contact with the barista’s single functioning and he raised his eyebrows. While he didn’t mind the contact, there was one fact bothering him.

“Don’t you have a boyfriend?”

Rowan’s eye changed. Something painful appeared. Smoker almost regret asking. 

“Sometimes, I wish I didn’t,” Rowan whispered. 

“Something happening?”

The younger man rubbed the back of his neck. “I mean. I guess. I don’t want to bother you with relationship issues like that.”

“Rowan, I’m a detective. I can see how pained you are. It’s dumb to lie to me.”

“Well.” His voice was still hushed. “He isn’t too nice. He gets really angry sometimes. But he doesn’t tell me what I do to make him so mad. I wish he would so I could change and do better.” Smoker had a feeling that it wasn’t Rowan’s fault for his partner’s behavior. “But he’s also the first boyfriend I’ve had in a long while.”

“It sounds like you don’t know what you want to do with the relationship. And it sounds like he’s really unfair about some things.”

“Don’t give me that lecture, Smoker. So many people have already given it to me.” Smoker raised an eyebrow. “People think he abuses me but he hasn’t hit me. He just has anger issues and he doesn’t know how to handle his anger.”

Smoker’s expression didn’t help how Rowan was feeling. “He isn’t abusing me, I swear.”

The detective’s sigh made Rowan draw away. Smoker began to long for his friends' touch. “I don’t want to lecture you. You’re a grown man. I’m just worried about you. You sound unhappy.”

“Don’t worry about it, we’re just… having issues right now. We’ll get it worked out. But enough about me, I wanna know about you too.” 

A pained smile forced its way on the barista’s face. His desperate change of subject told Smoker that there was more happening with Rowan’s boyfriend than he was willing to admit. But he didn’t want to push him any further into being uncomfortable. 

“Same old, same old. Working on the same cases, dealing with the same things.”

“Oh yeah? I wish you were able to tell me more about your work because it always seems to stress you out. But I know you don’t like to, so I won’t push it. But, you seem to be doing really well. You look good. But you always look good.”

A small smile and blush flashed on Smoker’s face. He tried to ignore the comment and he shrugged. “I’m just doing what I usually do.” 

Seeing the detective smile made Rowan smile. He had a gorgeous smile and he never got to see it much. He stood, using the table to help him stand. “I really want to talk to you more, but I should get back to work. Come back to talk sometime soon okay?”

Smoker nodded. “I do need another coffee for a coworker. Make it as strong as you can.”

“Your coworker have a death wish?”

“Probably.” 

A laugh came from the dappled barista and he pat Smoker’s chest gently. They parted kindly with soft and warm words and Smoker let himself be enveloped in the cold November air once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really like writing this so far. Hopefully the rest of this story is as fun.


	3. Stress relief

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smoker finally gets the report on the latest victim. Knowing he has a long night ahead of him, he goes to the coffee shop for a pick-me-up. What he gets wasn't really what he had in mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Warnings for this chapter:**  
> \- Explicit oral sex  
> \- Vague hints at abuse  
> \- Cheating

Smoker always dreaded going to the coroner's office. He found himself wandering its dark and murky halls after 3 in the afternoon. He just got a call from LPD’s coroner that he was done with his autopsy. It was cold, smelled like nauseating chemicals, and reeked of death. It made his skin crawl. Plus it always felt like the pathologists who worked there had some weird obsession with death. The coroner for the LPD was not an exception. 

Law rubbed his eyes before washing his hands to put on gloves. “The coffee you got me actually made this autopsy possible, so thanks for that.” Smoker grunted in response. “So I’ve managed to look this body over two times. Maybe a third, I can’t remember. I detailed each autopsy so you get to have some extra work. You’re welcome. You might need a coffee yourself to get through these.”

“I’m convinced you’re fucking insane.”

“Tell me something new.”

Smoker rolled his eyes. “So everything matches up with the previous victims?”

“Just about. There are some minute differences that you wouldn’t be able to notice, but that's an error on the murderer’s part. Yet again. Nothing telling of who could have done this. The only thing that we can tell from this is that whoever did it is not a gentle or kind lover. Borderline abusive, especially with the types of bruises on the body. This guy went through hell and ultimately died. It’s a shame. The fact that the murders get cleaner with each kill just makes this more concerning. The murderer is getting better at this.”

“Fuck. I was hoping you’d give me more work in the sense of progress.”

“If it’s any consolation, I got a name.”

“And you didn’t tell me that when I first came in here?”

“I haven’t slept in 32 hours, give me a break.”

“I’m the one who needs a fucking break, spit it out.”

“Caden Elsias. Don’t know much else. But hopefully a name will give you that much.”

Smoker let out a grunt and he nodded. He took the files from Law and looked at it before turning to leave.

“It might take you a while to fill that all up. Good luck.”

“Yeah yeah. Make sure you go home and get some rest. And for fucks sake, call an Uber. The world does not need to see you driving after being awake for 32 hours.”

“Fuck off.”

“Gladly.”

Law flicked off the back of the detective, not paying much attention to his departure. After exiting the pathologists, Smoker found himself driving to the coffee shop. He needed as much coffee as possible if he was going to finish this paperwork. And he figured he would check in on Rowan after the conversation they had the day prior. 

He walked in and saw the barista wiping down the tables. He stood there staring until the smaller man turned to look at him, smile forming on his face. 

“Hi Smoker.”

“Hey.”

“It’s a little late for coffee ain’t it?”

“Nah. I have a lot of work I need to get done tonight.”

“You stressed out?”

“You know I am. You doin’ okay?”

Rowan shifted slightly. “Not really.”

Smoker stared at Rowan and noted his sad gaze. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“No. Not really.”

Smoker couldn’t convince him. He nodded casually as he watched the barista get closer. He touched his hand gently. 

“Can I help you relieve some steam though?”

Smoker whipped his head at him in surprise at the sudden offer. “You have a boyfriend and you’re offering that?”

Rowan bit his lip slightly. “He’s cheating on me and I can tell how stressed you are. I can fix that. Plus I haven’t gotten to do anything like this ever since me and Gento started dating. I want to have some fun.”

The detective stared at the shorter man and he looked into his determined eye. There were so many questions on his mind but the biggest one was whether he wanted to get blown in a bathroom or not. 

He sighed. Fuck it.

Smoker grabbed his hand and pushed him into the bathroom, swiftly locking it and checking multiple times that no one would be able to walk in. He turned to face the barista.

The detective gathered his mind quickly and he held a hand up. “One thing. I need to lay down some ground rules for this.” Rowan paused and stepped back. “First of all, no kissing. Second of all, I’m open to trying new things. Third of all, don’t get attached just because we have sex.”

“Deal.”

As soon as Rowan agreed to it, he ducked down, getting on a knee and moving his prosthetic under his body. He put his hands on Smoker’s thighs and looked up at him eagerly.

“Can I?”

Smoker let out a big breath and he nodded. “Go ahead.”

Rowan nodded and undid the buckle of Smoker’s belt before moving back to easily undo the button to his pants. The detective watched how calmly and smoothly Rowan moved his fingers, sliding them around his groin seamlessly. After pulling down his pants a little further, Rowan admired the growing bulge in Smoker’s briefs. 

“How big are you?”

Smoker gripped Rowan’s jaw firmly and tugged him towards his hips. “Find out for yourself.”

Rowan grinned and grabbed the elastic waistband of Smoker’s briefs and slowly pulled down, watching his shaft appear from behind the fabric. Once his cock was fully uncovered, Rowan inhaled. He looked up at Smoker who smirked and nodded. 

The barista smiled and gently wrapped his hand around Smoker’s semi-erect cock. He pulled on his length, stiffening as he watched it bounce in response. 

“Holy fuck,” Rowan muttered, quickly unbuttoning his own pants and pulling out his dick. 

“If you want I can-” 

“Shut up and let me suck you off.” 

Before Smoker could say anything else, Rowan started pressing soft kisses against his length. His tongue lathered the sensitive skin and the detective squirmed under his grip. When he looked down at the man sucking him off, Rowan stared up at him, eyebrows furrowed with his cock pressed against his face. 

“Fuck,” Smoker groaned under his breath.

Rowan pressed his lips against the head of his dick. The tip of his tongue lapped against the slit and Smoker let out a breath that made Rowan antsy. He smirked before pushing his length into his mouth, backing up every so often to get his throat used to the girth. A hand ran through his hair slowly as he began to bob his head, roughly sucking off the detective. 

Smoker's eyes closed tightly as he felt the warmth of Rowan’s mouth around his throbbing cock. He began to apply force by gripping his head with both hands, moving him slowly on his cock. A small moan shot a jolt of electricity up his spine and he let out a quiet grunt. When the moans became repetitious, Smoker looked down and saw Rowan’s face, he realized he was on the verge of cumming. 

“You touching yourself while suckin’ me off?” They made eye contact and Smoker let out a hiss. “Are you gonna cum soon?” A small nod made him smirk. A moan was ripped from the detective's throat as Rowan moaned around his cock, squirming and twitching. The detective bucked his hips into Rowan’s lips. He grit his teeth and pulled the younger man's head off of his length, hand shooting to his ground to rub himself over the edge. The barista bat his hand away and moved to jerk him off himself. His mouth was open and he looked Smoker in the eye as he squeezed his dick. 

“Fuck!” A groan was torn from Smoker’s throat as he fell over the edge, thick white ropes shooting into Rowan’s mouth. Smoker looked down and watched as the younger man's tongue was coated in his seed. Some had shot onto his face. It was stupidly hot. Smoker almost jerked back into hardness when he watched Rowan swallow the load in his mouth. 

After they calmed down from their high, Smoker tucked himself back into his pants and he attempted to make himself appear well kept. As if he didn’t just get his dick sucked in a bathroom. Rowan wiped his mess off the floor between Smoker’s feet and he stood up, also readjusting himself. Before Smoker stepped out of the bathroom, Rowan ripped off a piece of toilet paper off the roll and he pulled a pen from his pocket. He scribbled something down and he put it in Smoker’s pant pocket. 

“Call me if you want to hook up again. Don’t text though.”

Smoker didn’t ask. “Okay. Thanks. That uh. That honestly helped me feel better.”

“Of course. I’ll do it again. You know how to reach me.”

Smoker smiled and nodded, walking out of the bathroom and the coffee shop all together, forgetting his coffee for instead the thought of a hot barista sucking him off in a bathroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the start of something big and it ain't just Smoker's dick.


	4. Attempting to find the link

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smoker talks with the people the latest victim knew well in hopes that he gets some answers. What he finds out only leads to pent up frustration.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Warnings for this chapter:**  
> \- Very vague mentions of emotional manipulation  
> \- This chapter is pretty clean of potential triggers and I'm kinda surprised.

Smoker was awoken by his bleating alarm clock. Based on his feeling upon opening his eyes, he already determined that the day was going to suck. He grunted and reached for his alarm, silencing it before it drove him insane. He sat up in his bed lazily, rubbing his face to try to wake himself up. He felt like he had barely slept.

He had realized he forgot to get a coffee the day prior by midnight and he was already so deep in work. So he kept working until three in the morning. His alarm went off at seven. After he showered and got dressed, he quickly left his apartment to drive to the coffee shop. He was afraid that the air might be uncomfortable between him and Rowan, but it was actually quite lax. He was greeted as he usually was and they had a quick conversation before Smoker had to leave for work. 

As he stepped into the station, he could tell the day would be stressful by the way Sengoku was yelling his ear off. 

“White! There are some things I need you to do.”

Smoker turned before he sat at his desk. “Yes?”

“Have you spoken to the victim's family?”

“No. I was gonna do that today. Connected the victim to a missing persons report from a week or so ago. Wish this wasn’t the answer to it though.”

“No one does. You keeping an eye out for missing persons?”

“Yeah. Nothing since Caden Elsias was found.”

Sengoku stroked his mustache and huffed. “Alright. Talk to the family and try to figure out who this person hangs out with. Try to make some connections with the others.”

Smoker nodded. He downed the rest of his coffee before walking right back out of the station. The drive to the family’s home was not gentle on his brain as his mind raced with the uncertainty of the case, the uncertainty of his life, the uncertainty of life in general. A quick glance in the rear view mirror showed his exhaustion. His eyes were bagged and his hair was messy. He looked like an absolute disaster. He felt like it too. He hoped it didn’t transfer to when he spoke with the family of the last victim. 

He sighed as he pulled into the driveway of their home, straightened his hair and approached the door.

…

Smoker thanked the mother kindly as she handed him a cup of tea. He took a sip before looking at her. “Miss Elsias,” he started softly. “Was there anyone who was particularly interested in your son? Either romantically, platonically…”

She wiped her face with a tissue and took a steady breath. “Not that I’m aware of. Caden had always been very open with us ever since he came out when he was a teenager. He broke up with a partner awhile ago but he told us that it was a mutual agreement. We’ve seen his partner since then.”

“Who was his partner?”

“Sergio Casba.”

Smoker jotted that note down. “Know where he can be found?”

“Last I remember, he worked at one of Caden’s jobs. I can’t remember which.”

Smoker nodded and set his glass down on a coaster atop the coffee table after taking a sip. “Any friends?”

“Oh yes. He was always well loved. Such a sweet boy… he made friends with anyone, regardless of their popularity or status. He was so nice.” She looked down and looked at Smoker. “Do… do you think that could have been why he was killed? Was he taken advantage of? Oh my boy…”

Miss Elsias continued to cry and she hid her face behind the tissue in her hand. Smoker didn’t rule out that idea. He’s always found that a lot of victims of abuse are often taken advantage of because they won’t notice the treatment they’re being put through. It sounded especially familiar lately.

“Was there anyone in particular he hung out with? Someone he would spend a lot of time with?”

Miss Elsias sighed. “Not that I’m aware of. He was really busy working. He didn’t really have time to hang out with people.” She sniffed and wiped a tear from her face. “He really only spent time with the people he worked with.”

A sudden voice interrupted them. “Mom? I came as soon as I got the text. Is everything okay?” A young woman came in and looked at Smoker. Her face contorted painfully.

“Katie,” said Miss Elsias. “They found Caden.”

Who Smoker presumed to be Caden’s sister covered her mouth and ran to her mom and hugged her. Smoker stayed quiet to allow them to grieve. He was angry with himself at not being able to prevent another death. There was seemingly nothing in common with all of these victims except how they were killed. That was the only way Smoker knew that they were all killed by the same person. He kept pulling a blank. 

When the two women had calmed, they apologized. Smoker told them not to. 

“What did Caden do? Where did he work, what hobbies did he have?”

“He worked at the hardware store. The outside of downtown. Um… Franky’s. He worked there full time. He had a part time job at the Winking Queen at night. He was always treated well though, and as far as I know, he wasn’t harassed or anything. His boss there is a good person.”

“Ivankov?”

“Yes. Caden spoke highly of them.”

Smoker nodded and drank the rest of his tea. “Thank you Miss Elsias. I’m so sorry for your loss. We’ll be in touch when we make more discoveries. I’ll leave you and the rest of your family to prepare.”

“Please. Please find who killed my baby.” 

Smoker nodded. “I’ll do everything I can.”

He stepped outside of the house and closed the door to the wails of the mourning family. 

…

“I can’t imagine why anyone would want to hurt him,” spoke Iceburg, the co-owner of Franky’s Hardware. “He was such a gentle soul. Hard worker too. He was excellent at working in hardware, he had such good skill.”

“Has anyone ever come to talk to him specifically? Anyone ask for him?”

Iceburg rubbed his chin, disturbing his beard. “I mean, he did commissions, so he was asked for all the time. If anyone asked I probably wouldn’t have thought any different of it. This will definitely make me more aware in the future though…”

“Do you happen to have a list of people who have commissioned him?”

“Yes, yes, I should have one in my records. Come with me.”

Smoker followed the man into the offices where he dug out a list. He quickly made a copy and handed the slip of paper to Smoker. 

“I hope this helps you find whoever did this. Caden was one of the people who deserved this the least. His poor family…”

“We’re doing what we can. Thank you.”

After Smoker glanced over the list he put it in his coat pocket. “Did Caden ever come to you about anything?”

“Not particularly. Every now and then he would have a bad day - who doesn’t? - and he would rant to me about what was frustrating him that particular day.” 

“Anything that stood out?”

“No, the basic troubles of a young man. Struggling to find a new place to live, relationship problems, but nothing that made me fear for his safety.”

“Relationship problems? Like what?”

“Difficulties working things out with a partner. It seemed like he got things sorted out. When he talked to me about it he said that he and his partner decided to part ways. Seemed pretty fine to me. However, he did mention that he was quietly seeing someone. I honestly thought he was talking about a hooker, so I didn’t really ask.”

“Is the name Sergio Casba familiar to you?” 

Iceburg tapped his cheek as he pondered. “No. It isn’t. I think Caden mentioned a Sergio once, but in all honesty, I can’t remember. I’m sorry I can’t be more helpful there.”

Smoker nodded and rubbed his chin. “Alright. Thank you for your help and cooperation, Iceburg.”

“Good luck, Detective.”

Smoker nodded and waved, turning back to return to the station. 

…

Smoker spent the rest of his day sitting at his desk in the station, often flipping between working on paperwork and putting more thought into the case. Around six, he was writing all of his thoughts down on a whiteboard he dragged near his desk. 

He listed the victims in order of their death. Aiden Wren. Kuse Narihira. Fang Delton. Caden Elsias. The only thing Smoker knew about the previous three were what they did and that their situation was just like Elsias: they were well liked and generous. However they didn’t know each other as far as Smoker was aware. But there had to be some connection between all of them that wasn’t just the method of their murder. They couldn’t all just be as random as they seemed. There was a link somewhere but where, he couldn’t say.

He ran a hand through his hair and he looked at the note regarding Elsias’ work at the Winking Queen. That must have been where Sergio Casba was. However, going to the Winking Queen meant he would have to go question the workers there and talk to Ivankov, which made him slightly nervous. They were never a fan of the police, but Smoker felt like he had a mutual respect for Ivankov. He sighed. He hoped that once he was able to go to the Winking Queen, he would finally have more answers than questions. He wrote it down on his board. 

He told Sengoku he was going home and put his coat on. He sighed and walked out to his car, looking up at the darkening sky. It was filling him with an odd sense of cold and loneliness. He thought about going to a bar and buying some drinks, but then he remembered he had Rowan’s number. And he remembered Rowan’s offer yesterday.

As he approached his car, he pulled up Rowan’s contact and pressed call.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing sex is so easy but writing actual lore makes me want to cry. This chapter was so hard to write. I have the next chapter written but this one I kept reading over and over and over.


	5. The benefits

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smoker takes up Rowan's offer to blow some steam.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Warnings for this chapter:**  
> \- Explicit sex  
> \- Blowjobs  
> \- Cheating (the whole chapter is Rowan cheating)

Rowan was sitting on his couch when his phone began going off. It was a number he didn’t recognize, so he was tempted to ignore it, but he was feeling particularly alone. 

“Hello?”

“Hey,” responded a gruff voice. Rowan almost got aroused thinking about it. 

“Hi Smoker.”

“You doing anything right now?”

“Nope. I’m just watching TV. Are you?”

“I just got off work. I was thinking about going to a bar for some drinks but I’d rather do something else.” 

Rowan bit his lip at the idea of him being Smoker’s first thought for a good time. “Okay. What did you have in mind?”

“Come over to my place. I’ll buy us a pizza, we can watch some TV or a movie. Relieve some stress if you know what I mean.”

“I would love that.”

“Okay. Want me to come pick you up?”

“Yes please. I’m really excited.”

“I am too. I’ll see you in a few minutes. I’ll call you when I get here.”

When Smoker pulled up, Rowan hopped out to his car like a rebellious teenager breaking out of his parents house to go to a party. He threw himself in the car and told him to go before his boyfriend pulled up. 

Smoker was slightly worried about the drive being awkward and silent, but Rowan was quick to spice things up. As soon as Smoker drove out of the neighborhood, the barista began to palm Smoker’s crotch. The detective gasped in response and he was tempted to pull over the car and fuck Rowan on the side of the road, but he wanted their first fuck to be good and private, not rushed and in the backseat of his car. 

For the drive home, Smoker decided to indulge Rowan and his free hand helped him pull his hardening cock out of his pants. Rowan grinned and took it in his hand. 

“Not gonna lie, I missed your frenum piercings when I blew you yesterday.”

“Kinda shocked you did considering they’re right there.”

“I was too horny to actually care. But now that I know they’re there, I’d love to play with them.”

Rowan bent over after that statement and he began jerking Smoker off, watching him harden in the dim street lights. Smoker ran his free hand in Rowan’s soft brown hair. The barista took time to press sloppy kisses to the piercings on Smoker’s shaft, rolling his tongue over them. As soon as Smoker grew fully erect, Rowan began to trace the veins in his cock with his tongue.

“You are more eager than yesterday.”

“I’ve thought about you a little bit today. I didn't think you would call me so soon.”

“I’ve been thinking about you too.”

“Oh yeah?”

“You would want to know wouldn’t you?”

“I’m curious now. I want to know what you think about when you think about me.”

“When we get to my place, I’ll show you.” Smoker gently put his hand on Rowan’s forehead and he pushed his head back. “I don’t want to cum just yet.”

Rowan huffed and crossed his arms in a fake pout. 

Smoker smiled. “Don’t pout like that. You’ll enjoy this.”

The car pulled into the parking lot of Smoker’s apartment and he quickly put himself back in his pants. He pushed Rowan into his apartment and as soon as he closed the door, he pushed Rowan into the door, pressing aggressive kisses and bites against Rowan’s neck. The smaller man let out a moan and he gripped Smoker’s coat. 

“Don’t leave any bruises on my neck, I need to be able to hide them.”

Smoker nodded with a quiet apology. He pulled Rowan into his bedroom and he gently pushed him on the bed. He immediately threw his coat off and he attempted to pull his shirt off without tearing any of the buttons. Rowan dropped his jaw and stared at Smoker’s tattooed body. 

“This is what’s been under that suit? Holy fuck.”

Smoker raised an eyebrow at the compliment. “What are you waiting for? You’re allowed to touch.” 

Rowan was fast to reach his hands out to Smoker’s pectorals, rubbing the muscle on his chest and digging his fingers into the skin. His fingers traced the ink deer skull on his chest and he moved forward to press kisses on his skin. His hands ran down to palm at his abs, admiring the smooth skin. His body hair was rough and coarse and god, Rowan was reveling in it. His eyes scraped down the sleeved muscular arms. 

“You are sexy as hell.” 

Smoker tugged on Rowan’s shirt. “Thank you, but I’m ready to see you now.” 

Rowan allowed the detective to pull his shirt off and he began to press kisses on his chest. He noted the scar that went from his collar bones to his navel. He began to teeth at the fat on his belly and he lapped at the skin sloppily. He looked up at the flustered looking Rowan and smirked.

He moved down to his pants and he quickly undid his belt and undid the button on his pants. Rowan squirmed as Smoker pulled his pants and boxers down, freeing his cock from his pants. He was slightly smaller than average, yet it was pretty girthy. Smoker dipped his head and he slipped the length in his mouth. 

Rowan moaned loudly and he gripped Smoker’s hair. “Oh fuck,” he whispered, squirming under the weight of Smoker’s body. Smoker pressed his mouth over the entirety of Rowan’s cock and swallowed around it, causing Rowan to cry out. Getting the noises he wanted, Smoker pulled away and he wiped his mouth. 

“I have some lube if you want to get yourself ready.”

Rowan was panting and he nodded. “I might need help getting to bed because I have to take off my prosthetic.”

“I’ll help you.” 

Rowan blushed, stood up and he took the lube bottle the larger man handed to him. He stepped into his bathroom and left the door cracked. Smoker was about to get on his bed when he started hearing gasps and moans from the bathroom. It was obvious that Rowan wasn’t paying any mind to how much noise he was making, creating moans so loud they echoed off his walls. He walked over to the bathroom and peered in. His cock throbbed when he saw Rowan bent over his bathtub, thrusting 3 fingers in and out of his ass quickly. It took him almost no time to finger himself and he was whining shamelessly in the detectives bathroom. He blushed and he sat down in his bed, waiting for Rowan to be done. 

Rowan eventually stepped out, hobbling on one leg and utilizing the door frame to stand. He blushed at the sight of Smoker on the bed, hand around the base of his thick cock.“I think I’m ready for you,” he said quietly. 

Smoker stood and approached the smaller man. He gripped Rowan’s hands and helped him back into the bedroom, pushing him on his stomach onto the bed. Smoker was fast to pull a condom over his cock. He slicked it up with lube and he got on the bed behind the barista. 

Upon feeling the bed dip under their weight, Rowan gasped and he spread his ass with his hands. He felt Smoker’s length slide between his ass cheeks and he slowly bucked his hips. One of Smoker’s large hands was settled on the small of Rowan’s back. The other gripped the base of his cock. A thumb circled his back. 

“You ready?” Smoker asked. 

Rowan nodded and he held onto one of Smoker’s pillows. “Yes. Please put it in.”

Smoker smirked and slowly pushed the tip of his cock through the tight ring of muscles, causing Rowan to cry out. The detective moved his hand from his cock once he was inside far enough to Rowan’s hips. 

Once Smoker was fully sheathed inside of Rowan, he began fucking him with slow but deep thrusts. Rowan slowly backed up against him and let out gentle gasps. It didn’t take too long for Smoker to thrust faster and harder. He shifted his weight onto his hands, placed by Rowan’s shoulders, and began bucking wildly. 

Rowan whined into the sheets below him. Smoker was godly. This was probably the best dick he had ever gotten and he was absolutely wallowing in it. It was great to suck, but having it in his ass was the cherry on top. He would never be able to masturbate regularly without thinking about it. For the time being, he was enjoying the feeling of a thick cock in his ass. 

It took Rowan twenty minutes for his leg to get weak and numb. He asked for a position change and Smoker obliged. The barista was quickly rolled onto his back and he immediately spread his legs for the large man to get back in between them. Smoker easily slipped back into Rowan’s ass and bucked his hips to sheath himself, continuing their rough grinding.

Smoker greatly enjoyed the small things when it came to Rowan in bed. He prepared himself perfectly. The noises he made were to die for. He felt like he would bust a nut over any moan or whine. The room was otherwise silent, and he was getting off just by hearing their skin slap together with the noises Rowan was making. And whenever Rowan cried Smoker’s name it made him become erratic and he became closer to losing control. For such a sweet face, the man was a dirty talker and it drove Smoker insane.

“Smoker, I’m gonna cum,” he heard, bringing him back to reality.

He looked down at the man below him and he smiled slightly. Large fingers wrapped around Rowan’s cock and he began to pump violently, continuing his deep thrusts into him. 

Rowan’s voice filled the air, replacing the quiet slapping of skin with yelling and moans. Smoker was drowning in his screams and he began to grunt as his thrusts became more unpredictable. Rowan’s voice peaked in a scream as he tightened around Smoker’s cock, cum shooting from his own and spilling onto Smoker’s fingers. Smoker fell over the edge with him, allowing the tight muscle of Rowan’s ass to squeeze his orgasm through his cock. He let out a groan as he finished his thrusts, rolling his hips slowly to a halt.

The world was spinning around them as they lay in Smoker’s bed, drenched in sweat and chests heaving. Smoker slowly pulled out of Rowan, his hands leaving his skin. He attempted to act casual despite having the best orgasm of his life as he threw out his condom. 

“You want me to get you any food while you’re here?”

Rowan shook his head, smiling at the offer. “I appreciate that, but I think it would be best if I got back home just in case.”

Smoker nodded and allowed Rowan to clean off. While he did, the detective returned to his living room in his boxers, grabbing a beer before throwing himself on his couch flipping through the TV channels. Rowan thanked him for a good time and quickly left after declining an offer to get a ride back home. Smoker sighed and wondered if being friends with benefits would be good for either of them. 

He recognized the situation Rowan was in. It was borderline abusive. And he believed Rowan noticed it too, but he was too hesitant to leave it. Or maybe he truly didn’t know how bad it sounded. If Gento was to find out about their relationship Smoker was worried he would be investigating another body. 

From the surface, it did look pretty bad. Smoker was fucking a man in a relationship. There was no way he could justify his actions, but at the same time, he was addicted to the feeling of having someone he can fuck casually with no strings attached. But how long would it take for him to get caught up in those strings? He was so conflicted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was so easy to write. I don't know why.


	6. The Winking Queen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smoker finds his way to the Winking Queen, a local strip club, to ask questions regarding Caden. He doesn't get what he's hoping to get.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **No specific warnings for this chapter**

Smoker found himself dreading walking into the Winking Queen. Clubs usually weren’t his scene, especially when strippers were involved. He didn’t like the noise and the bustle. He’d rather spend time in private getting his own lapdance from someone, especially if it led to one thing or another. But he was here for work and to talk to someone who didn’t really want to talk to the police in the first place. 

He stepped in and removed his sunglasses, letting the darkness of the club consume him. The neon lights within the club highlighted the sweaty skin of dancers and patrons alike. It was mid-day so there weren’t as many patrons as usual. When Smoker looked around, the most common patrons were middle aged men probably escaping their marriage and drinking away their woes while staring at the breasts of women half their age.

Smoker quietly pushed his way through the club, trying to be as low brow as possible. He never liked stirring up businesses when it came to investigations, and clubs would especially give him absolute hell for bothering them.

The detective began to sweat nervously when a topless dancer approached him. She gripped his tie and tugged him downwards to look into her eyes. 

“Hi big guy. Just get off work? Need to relax a bit?” 

Smoker didn’t have the heart to tell her that he preferred men over women despite being bisexual, but he tried to play it cool. 

“As much as I would love to, I’m just here for the drinks. ‘Preciate it though.” Smoker shifted and fingered his pocket to find some cash. He passed her a ten dollar bill and he smiled softly. 

She returned the smile and took the bill. She stroked his face softly and winked. “If you need a pick me up, you know where to find me.” She turned around and walked away, adding a sway to her hips. Smoker tucked his tie back into his jacket and he turned towards the bar. 

The bartender looked at him and raised an eyebrow. “What can I get you?” She flipped her orange hair over her shoulder as she approached. He read the name tag on her chest. Nami. 

“Is Ivankov here?”

“Of course. Why you want to know though?”

“Work related questions.” 

She nodded and pointed towards the hall at the very back of the club. “Go down that hall and it’s the last door on the left. Make sure you knock, even if it’s open or cracked, Ivankov doesn’t like people interrupting.”

Smoker nodded and thanked her before slinking away down the hall, hands in his pocket. There were no lights in the hall to guide him towards the door but when he saw light streaming from under a door, he knocked gently. He heard the familiar neutral voice of Ivankov saying “come in”. 

Smoker walked in and anticipated Ivankov’s sound of disgust. 

“Well if it isn’t Hunter White, coming to grace the club with his authority.” The figure turned from the door and went back to their desk, where they were reapplying makeup. “I’m still waiting for the day you come in asking for a side gig. I’ve seen your body on your Twitter. Ain’t much of a talker, but lord you are the most delicious man I have ever seen. Ladies love a good cop.”

“I’m not here to strip, Ivankov.”

They rolled their eyes and put their chin in their hand to feign disinterest. “What do you want?”

“I’m here to talk about Caden Elsias.”

Ivankov’s purple wig shook as they turned to look at him. “Did you find him?”

Smoker nodded after a slight pause. “We found his body in the forest on the outskirts of town.”

Ivankov’s face fell, all hopes dashed. They sighed sadly and reached for tissues on their desk. They started to press at their eyes before tears could form and fall to disrupt their makeup. 

“Please, Hunter. Sit down.” They waved to one of the couches in their office and he sat down, waiting for them to join him on the other side. When they did, he leaned forward showing he was listening. 

“Caden was such a good boy. I looked at him like one of my own. Of course I look at all of my babies like that, regardless of if they dance or serve at the bar.”

“What did Caden do?”

“He did a little bit of everything. He danced some, he served some, sometimes he would handle folks who got too rowdy.”

“Did he ever have any regulars visit him, do you know?”

“There was this one man who came in frequently that was often fond of him. I don’t know his name though. We’re anonymous so we often don’t keep track of names.” Smoker nodded, understanding. “However, when I saw him, he had red hair and he would always go up to Caden no matter where he was.” 

“Did this guy act strange?” 

“No, not at all. He seemed very friendly. But Caden never brought him up so I always assumed it was one of his patrons.”

Smoker nodded and took the cap off of his pen with his teeth, flipping through his notepad. “This guy had red hair right? What else?”

Ivankov put their hands in their afro, messing with the tight curls. “Oh, he was a basic white guy. Red hair, looked like a bizarre modern attempt at a pompadour. He pulled it off well. He comes up to your chin. He wore a black t-shirt and blue jeans, but so does every other sad man who comes to this joint.”

“You got cameras?”

“Of course.”

“Okay. I’ll need the footage of the last few times Caden worked here.”

“Yes, yes, I can get that prepared for you.” The owner of the club stood and quickly called their technician to get the footage for the detective. “Hopefully this has something helpful.” 

“As do I. Do you happen to know someone by the name of Sergio Casba?”

“Oh, yes! He works part time as a bartender. Shy at first but when he opens up to you, he is the sweetest boy. He isn’t involved is he?” 

“Caden’s mother, as well as his boss at his full time job, told me about a relationship issue he was having with Sergio. About a breakup. Any details on that?”

“Oh, yes yes. The two of them were really cute. They weren’t obviously together, but they did small things in public. As far as I know, they were having issues communicating. But when I spoke with them about it, they were still working really well together.”

Smoker nodded and scribbled it down. “Do you think I can talk to him next time he works? Just to make sure he’s not involved.”

“Of course. He works at the end of the week.”

“Okay. I’ll come here at the end of the week. Do you mind if I talk to some of your other employees?”

“Go ahead.”

Smoker nodded his thanks and he stood to leave. 

“Hunter.” He turned to look over at Ivankov. “Thank you. For being considerate about coming in. You’re the only cop who has ever been considerate of that. Even when you’re trying to do your job.”

Smoker shrugged. “I know how it is. I don’t want you all to have to struggle. You’re a good person, Ivankov.”

Ivankov looked up at Smoker and smiled slightly, watching him leave. The door closed behind him and he walked back to the bar, where Nami was cleaning the top of the bar boredly. He sat down on a stool and looked at her. 

“Back from talking with the boss?”

“Yeah. Wonderin’ if I could ask you some questions.” Upon her eyebrows furrowing, he held up his badge. “I have questions about Caden.”

Nami set her washcloth down and sighed, pressing her hands together. “You found him?” she whispered quietly. 

Smoker nodded sympathetically. 

“Murdered?”

He nodded again.

She nodded as well and sighed softly. “I feared that.”

“Why say that?”

“When someone you know goes missing for a few days, you honestly… expect the worst. Especially with the other murders… It’s scary.”

“Was there anyone who could have potentially wanted to harm him?”

“I don’t think so no. He was the nicest guy.”

“What about one of his regulars? Ivankov talked about a guy with red hair who would visit him, regardless of what he was doing.”

“Oh, I don’t know the names of anyone’s regulars. I serve my regulars, the other workers serve theirs. But he seemed nice enough. Always made Caden smile, always treated him well as far as I could tell.”

Smoker nodded. “Well, I appreciate your cooperation. And I’m sorry it had to come to this.”

Nami nodded slightly and she grabbed her dish towel. “Catch that bastard please.”

“I will. Give me some time and I’ll find him.” As he turned to leave, he really hoped he could keep his word.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I used to update this every day but then I just. Stopped. Been paying a lot of attention to stuff happening in the world, and I've been taking time to dedicate towards learning and spreading information. Thanks for your patience!


	7. It never ends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another body turns up. It feels like it'll never end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Warnings for this chapter**  
> \- Death mentions  
> \- Oral & anal sex  
> \- Anal fingering  
> \- Cheating (still)

The few days after Smoker initially visited the Winking Queen had been what felt unproductive at best. In reality Smoker had been losing sleep because of how often he was working on the case. He had talked to Sergio Casba and he was completely clean. Casba had taken the detective into one of the private rooms where they discussed his relationship with the late Elsias.

“He was very sweet. We did have a rough spot in our relationship. We both struggled to communicate and tell each other what we wanted out of it. We decided that it was best to split up, but we were still pretty good friends afterwards. Neither of us had hard feelings, I’m sure.”

His alibi was solid and he was pretty unsuspicious. However, the other suspect, Elsias’s regular, was still impossible to determine. After looking through all of the tapes, there wasn’t a way Smoker could identify him. The tapes were extremely blurry and he couldn’t refine it without tampering with it. He was beyond stressed. Every lead he had felt like it came to a dead end. 

He’d managed to get his frustration out with Rowan once that week. His orgasms were never as good as they were when he was balls deep in Rowan’s ass, and it became such a good coping mechanism for him. And he was starting to develop an actual friendship out of it. Rowan began to stay for longer periods of time, eating dinner, watching shows until late at night when he would leave to sneak back home.

Masturbating would never be good. So when he was jerking off one morning, he sighed and immediately went soft when he got a call from Sengoku. He couldn’t even be frustrated or annoyed when he answered.

“What?”

“We have another body.”

\-----

Smoker immediately left his apartment to drive to the next body. He rubbed the bridge of his nose as he pulled up. Another victim far out from town. Opposite side but just about equal distance from town to the forest. He pulled over as soon as he saw the crime scene and he exited his vehicle, walking through the depths of the woods. 

He approached a familiar figure. 

“How long has it been since the last one?”

Trafalgar Law turned to the detective. 

“Smoker-ya. You won’t believe what I found on this body.”

“What?”

“Nothing different than the past bodies. Yet this murder was even cleaner.” 

“Fucking kidding me… So another dead end?”

“I’m afraid so. Unless I find anything significant during the autopsy, this is just another body.”

Smoker rubbed his face and he pulled out a carton of cigarettes from his coat pocket. After waving vaguely to the pathologist, he walked back to the road where he leaned on his car hood, quickly pulling a lighter from his pocket. He flicked the lighter and held it to his face, inhaling as soon as the nicotine caught flame. 

He leaned back and exhaled, watching the smoke drift away from his lips and disperse in the sky. He heard boots approaching and he looked up. The pathologist walked up to him and waved his fingers. Smoker rolled his eyes and handed Law a cigarette and his lighter. 

“Make any progress, Smoker-ya?”

“No. It’s pissing me off. I have a vague description, but do you know how many people have red hair in this town? I wanted to have at least a solid suspect before another body showed up but I was too late.”

“Quit blaming yourself. You can only do so much. You’re doing what you can.”

“And it isn’t good enough.” 

“You’re literally taking all the evidence you have, which at this point, is barely any and you’re trying to find a killer who’s almost impossible to identify. I think you’re doing good enough.”

Smoker huffed and exhaled smoke. It was going to be another long day.

He left Law to bag the body and conduct his autopsy as he went back to the station to get some more work done. He had been sitting at his desk for what felt like hours until someone walked up and sat on his desk. He glanced up and raised an eyebrow. 

A woman with rather large glasses and silky black hair tied up in a ponytail was sitting on his desk, looking down at him with large brown eyes. He remembered when this woman joined the academy as a girl. With her luck and clumsiness, he was surprised she made it through to become an officer.

“Officer.”

“Detective.”

“Aren’t you supposed to be on the streets, Tashigi?”

“Nah. I’m taking leave soon.”

“Something happen?”

She shook her head. “Not really. Family death. Garp is letting me take some time.”

“He’s always been considerate, that one.”

“Yeah. I heard your case was getting frustrating. What’s happening?”

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I just don’t understand how a killer can be so clean. There’s literally no way to tie the deaths to anyone. And it doesn’t help that none of the victims have anything in common. None of them had ever met each other or even remotely worked in the same places. I feel like they’re just dropping out of the blue. It’s driving me mad not being able to do anything. I’ve made no progress.”

“Something will change, Smoker. You’re a good detective.”

“I’m gonna lose my job over this one.”

“No you’re not! Okay, okay.” Tashigi jumped off of his desk and pushed his shoulders to push his chair back a bit. She went on spouting on past cases he had been on, moving dramatically and waving her arms in the air to emphasize her point.

After the third recount, Smoker waved his hand. “Okay, I get it. So I manage to find the small things.”

Tashigi crossed her arms and huffed. “Give yourself more credit, Smoker-san. You’re a great detective. There’s a reason why you’re always assigned the deeper cases. You’ll get the answers soon.”

It was hard to ignore the hope in her eyes. He closed his eyes and rubbed his face. Tashigi gently punched his bicep. “If you need any help, you know how to contact me.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know.” As she turned to leave he spoke up once more. “Good luck with your family stuff. Death ain’t easy.” 

Tashigi looked back at him. Their eyes didn’t meet each other. She smiled and kept walking out. 

\-----

Smoker was lying on his couch lazily flipping through the channels on his television. There was nothing remotely interesting on and he was dying of boredom. It was a Tuesday night and there was no way he was going to a bar. Especially when the deaths kept lingering in his mind. 

His thoughts crawled back to the front of his mind. The victims were all relatively the same age - late 20’s to early 30’s. All men with similar builds. So the killer definitely had a type. The wounds were high in count, but they were applied cleanly. All of them were forcibly penetrated relatively close to their death. So this person was either an aggressive lover or someone with an extremely dark mind. If the relationship between Caden Elsias and his mysterious regular meant anything, then it had to be the former. And since no one had been noted to be acting strangely, it was most likely a relationship that people wouldn’t be suspicious of. If they were even aware of it. 

Smoker shot up and quickly jotted down some notes. He would have to go back to the Winking Queen and ask when Elsias dated Sergio Casba and if that involved his regular customer. Because as far as he knew, his regular visited so frequently it was almost scheduled. Maybe he was finally on to something. 

His train of thoughts crashed back into his scrambled mindset when he heard someone knock at his door. He got up and opened it, seeing the barista he hadn’t talked with in a week. 

“Rowan,” Smoker said, trying to hide his surprise.

“Hey,” Rowan responded, small smile on his face. “Can I come in?”

Smoker nodded and backed away, ushering the barista into his apartment. He watched as Rowan put his stuff on the ground next to the couch, flinging himself on the furniture. “Anything good on TV?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Figures. Tuesday’s suck for TV.”

For a few minutes, the two of them existed in a comfortable silence. Smoker was doing some quick tidying in his room while Rowan absentmindedly watched the home shopping network. When Smoker offered dinner, the barista shot up. They sat together at the detective’s dining room table, scrolling through restaurants that delivered, debating on whether they preferred pizza or burgers that night. After settling on pizza, the two of them found themselves on the couch while watching the next hot item on TV.

They chattered quietly, talking about nothing in particular. At first, Smoker was slightly annoyed by the small talk because it felt like a round of 20 questions, but they actually got interesting. They started off talking about music tastes before eventually talking about spirituality. Their conversations got deep and they were pleasantly looking each other in the eyes while talking about life after death.

After an hour, their conversation trailed off, running out of things to say. After a few moments of silence Smoker glanced at the other man on the couch. Once the silence grew unbearable, Smoker turned to look at Rowan. 

“So why’d you really come?”

Rowan looked over at the detective. “I figured you would understand why.” 

“Wanna get to it?”

Rowan smirked and nodded, crawled across the couch to pull himself on Smoker’s lap. He firmly sat down on his legs, slowly pulling off the shirt on the detective. Smoker breathed out, letting the barista nip and nibble at the skin on his shoulders. Smoker’s own hands went down to Rowan’s ass, squeezing and kneading. 

“I want your pants off right now,” he growled calmly. He listened to the giggle of the barista as he stood to push his pants down. Smoker assisted them and tugged them down, past the prosthetic that held him up. Only one thin layer of fabric stood between Smoker and Rowan’s skin and he was quick to pull those down as well, quickly biting and nibbling at his hip bones. 

Rowan carefully bent down and got on his knees in between Smoker’s. He pulled at the belt he wore and undid it, quickly getting it out of the way. After pulling at his pants, Rowan managed to get Smoker’s thick cock out of his pants. 

“Even when you’re not hard, your dick is still huge. Unfair, man.”

“I thought you liked it?”

“I do.”

“Then quit complaining.”

Rowan smirked mischievously as he took Smoker’s cock in his mouth, bobbing his head quickly. With the smaller man’s tongue rubbing against his shaft, it took the detective no time to get hard, and he slowly started thrusting his hips.

“Mmm,” Rowan hummed before pulling away. “You’re the only person who has ever wanted to face fuck me, and honestly it’s so hot.”

“Well I have to admit that you look really hot while taking my cock as well as you do. But I’d so much rather be in your ass right now.”

Rowan smirked. “Where’s your lube?”

Smoker smiled and nodded in the direction of the bedroom. “Same place it always is.” He waited for Rowan to get it and come back, slowly rubbing his cock.When Rowan returned, he climbed on Smoker’s lap again, handing him the bottle. 

“Did you prepare yourself or…”

“No. I was uhh. Hoping you would finger me.”

Smoker let a blush spread on his face. “You sure?”

“Yeah. I like your hands. Your fingers are big and long. I bet they would feel really nice.”

“Alright. If that’s what you want.” Smoker quickly spread the lub on his fingers and he pressed his fingers carefully on the ring of muscles. Rowan gasped and he wrapped his arms around Smoker’s neck, gripping his hair as he felt a finger push in. He groaned and began to lean back on his hand. It didn’t take very long for Smoker to be aggressively fingering the barista, putting all his muscle movement into his forearm. He had Rowan crying and moaning in his lap and he felt like he would lose his mind over the noises he was making. He had to break away so he didn't cum from that alone.

After filling Rowan up with his cock, the two of them fucked aggressively on Smoker’s couch, the barista riding him like his life depended on it. Smoker drowned in the feeling of the smaller man taking his cock as deep as he could and listening to the moans he delivered right into his ears. 

They fucked like that for several minutes before Rowan moved, muscles and legs growing weary and weak. Smoker looked at the barista and nodded towards the bedroom in question. As soon as he received a nod, he picked him up and carried him to the bedroom. After allowing Rowan to take off his prosthetic, Smoker re-inserted himself into his ass. 

Rowan came twice before Smoker could bring himself to his own climax. The barista was limp and a groaning mess after his second orgasm. His body was trying to brace itself for a third when Smoker pulled out and came on his stomach. The two of them were breathing heavily and they looked each other in the eyes.

“Stressed, huh?” Rowan said. 

“I’ve had a rough fucking week.”

“I could tell. I think I’ll feel that in the morning.”

“Oh.” Smoker felt somewhat ashamed. “I’m sorry if I got too rough, I got lost in the moment.”

“Don’t apologize,” the barista said, stroking Smoker’s stomach. “It felt really fucking good.”

Smoker lied down next to Rowan and he sighed. He stayed there and felt his eyes falling into sleep as his partner got up to shower. He must have dozed off because Rowan was shaking him gently. 

“Hey,” he asked. “Can I… Stay here for tonight?”

“Will you be okay if you do?”

“Yeah. I told him I was seeing family.”

Smoker nodded. “Yeah, of course. As long as it won’t lead to something bad for you, you’re always welcome to stay here.” Smoker got up and he stretched, grabbing some boxers from a set of drawers to pull on. “Do you need anything?”

He watched Rowan curl up under the covers of his bed. “No, I think I’m good for now.”

Smoker smiled softly. “Alright. I’ll be on the couch if you need anything. Goodnight.”

“G’night.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for not updating so frequently! Depression hitting me real hard.


	8. Comfort

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rowan's situation at home grows worse and worse. Smoker can only offer so much as he continues to be stumped by the murderer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Warnings for this chapter**  
> \- Descriptions of stabbing  
> \- Explicit anal sex  
> \- Mentions of emotional abuse  
> \- Cheating

Smoker was really tired when he was on his way to the pathologists lab. He didn’t sleep well on the couch and he was hoping the coffee would kick in to give him a burst. Rowan had stayed at his place for the night and he even let Smoker make him some breakfast. Then he took him to the coffee shop and he made him a free coffee, which Smoker gratefully took. 

He pulled into the pathologists office which seemed to be conveniently tucked in a dark corner of the mountains. It was really fitting for the coroners there, especially Law. The man seemed rather energetic when Smoker came in. It was rather shocking.

“Who did you kill to be this peppy?” Smoker joked. 

“I actually got sleep after the autopsy.”

“Shocker.”

“You come here to make fun of my life habits or did you want to hear about the autopsy?”

Smoker rolled his eyes. “I don’t even know why you called me when the murders are all the same.”

“They are if you look at the ways they die and the types of injuries on their bodies. However, I found some interesting details about these things.”

“Such as?”

“I compared all of the deep wounds on all of the bodies to see if they had some sort of similarity and after studying them all, I’ve realized they all were made by the same instrument. If it wasn’t the same blade, it was at least a similar model.”

“You can tell that type of thing?”

“Yeah. It isn’t like a tire or shoe print where you can determine the brand based on its track. But you can tell the difference between the way different knives cut.” Law pulled up a photo on his computer. It was a pig that had different gashes in its side. “I had to test out my theory first, but sure enough, they’re different. I tested scalpels, butcher knives, steak knives, and even butter knives.”

“That’s just torture.”

“Not only for the victim but for the assaulter as well because it is so difficult to cut deep with a butter knife.” 

“So, since we know that the murderer used the same knife, we know for sure that these weren’t random.”

“If this person was trying to make it possibly harder for us, they wouldn’t have made the murders so similar. So I have a feeling that this murderer isn’t murdering while trying to get away, but they’re doing it specifically for pleasure. They’re so focused on that aspect that they’re getting careless.”

“Sick fuck.”

“The fact that all of these murders are the same is suggesting bad habits. But I’m not a psychologist.”

“Then why the hell do you tell me all the problems I have?”

“Because I’m right and we both know it.”

Smoker rolled his eyes. “Anything else stand out?”

“With this last body, I found lube in his anal cavity. Guy got impatient. I was able to pinpoint the brand of lube, so I can give you that as well.”

“Any semen?”

“No. Guy is smart by using protection.”

“Have any of the bodies tested positive for an STD?”

“No. But I’m fearful that our murdering rapist might.”

Smoker nodded and he popped his neck. “Alright. Send me the report and I’ll look over it. Thanks again.”

\-----

That night, Smoker found himself dialing Rowan’s number, simply just to talk. They had done that quite a bit since their first fuck, where they would just be lonely and wanting a distraction, finding it in each other. They learned more and more about each other and Smoker was getting really pleased thinking Rowan as a friend, even if they did fuck on the side. 

However when he dialed the number, it was impossible to get a hold of him. He didn’t dial again just in case he was busy or doing something, so he was hoping that Rowan would call back. He hadn’t called back in over a week. 

He attempted to pretend like it didn’t bother him. But he had to admit that he was worried about Rowan. Whenever he went to the coffee shop, Rowan wasn’t there, which was really bizarre, especially when Rowan usually worked full time. He had wondered if he had inadvertently done something to hurt him, but he felt like Rowan would be more honest with him. 

His fears were erased when almost two weeks after they last met Rowan showed up at his doorstep. He was quick to pull in the barista, wrapping him in a tight hug. Although he was surprised, the smaller man couldn’t help but hug him back. 

“Hi Smoker,” he said, face buried in his chest. 

“I been worried about you,” Smoker responded. The barista looked up and smiled at that. 

“Really?”

“Yeah. I got used to our phone calls. Not hearing from you scared me. I was worried I did somethin’ to drive you away.”

“No you didn’t at all. I’m really sorry I haven’t called you. Things at home have gotten slightly worse.” Smoker furrowed his brows and pulled Rowan to the couch, where they sat to continue. 

“He noticed how frequently I was on the phone and he got really suspicious. So he’s started tracking my phone, monitoring my texts, listening in on my calls, so I can’t reach out anymore. He’s even trying to shorten my work hours, which absolutely sucks because I’m losing money.” 

“That isn’t fair at all. He’s stalking you.”

“I mean….” It was growing increasingly more difficult for Rowan to defend his boyfriend's behavior. “You’re right. Things are getting worse between us. Yeah, he’s been monitoring who I’m talking to but at the same time, he’s so demeaning. He’s so mean.”

“How so, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“He’s been calling me names, saying I’m ugly and how he’s the only person who will ever love me because of how I look. And that the reason he cheats so frequently is because he needs a break. It sucks so bad. He’s so possessive but at the same time he’s so fucking mean.” 

Smoker stared at Rowan, genuine hurt and empathy in his eyes. To Smoker, Rowan was extremely attractive. His various skin colors made him look angelic, like he had been kissed all over by angels. The one eye that wasn’t clouded over was a deep chocolate brown. Whenever he was in the sun, it glowed and Smoker could see the pigments. His cloudy eye just looked mystical. Smoker was struggling to understand how anyone could find him unattractive. All he could do was shake his head. 

“You came here to get away, so let’s not think about him right now, okay? I want to treat you, if that’s okay.”

“What do you mean?”

“Stay with me tonight. I want you to feel good, to feel worthy. Tell me what you love to have done to you and let me do it.”

Rowan blushed as he looked at Smoker. “You would do that?”

“Yeah. I care about you and I don’t like seeing you so upset. I want you to feel good.”

Rowan nodded. “I’d love that actually.”

The detective moved to press himself against Rowan. A hand moved to his cheek and he stroked it softly, feeling the smooth skin under his fingertips. “Tell me what you like. Any kinks, fetishes, anything like that?” 

Rowan blushed as he wrapped his arms around Smoker’s neck. “Um. I mean honestly the thing I think I would like most is good aftercare. Which I understand if you don’t want to do that since it’s so intimate.” Smoker shook his head. “Other than that, I don’t really know. Not to inflate your ego, but everything about you is perfect in bed.” That made the detective blush. “If you really want to do something, I love having my ass eaten. And honestly, really gentle sex is amazing. Just slow and intimate.”

“You really like intimacy huh?”

“Yeah, and Gento doesn’t do anything intimate. He’s a hit it and quit it kinda guy.” 

“Isn’t that what we’ve been doing when we first started this?”

“Yeah but like. You actually get me to cum and you have the stamina of a god. He doesn’t last longer than five minutes, and last time we had sex we went for over an hour. And I don’t think I’ve ever came before you have. Plus, once he’s done, he’s done. I gotta jerk the rest while he goes watch TV or something.”

Smoker’s nose scrunched up in disgust. “Listen, just because we’re friends with benefits doesn’t mean I don’t have bedside manners. I want you to cum just as bad as I do, so I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure I get you there.” 

Rowan smiled. “You saying you want me to cum is really hot.”

Smoker returned the smile with a smirk and he pressed gentle kisses against his neck. “I would hope so. With that said, may I?”

Rowan bit his lip before running a hand through Smoker’s hair. “May you what? I want to hear you say it.”

A deep groan went through Smoker’s throat and his lover could feel it rumbling it his chest. “I hate begging.”

“You aren’t begging, you’re just telling me what you want.”

“I want to make you cum,” he growled. His teeth nipped slowly at Rowan’s throat, hoping to draw out as much noise as possible. He got a moan in response and it made him antsy. 

It didn’t take very long for the two of them to end up in Smoker’s bed, nude and pressed against each other. After fucking roughly in doggystyle, Rowan asked Smoker to hold him close as they approached their orgasms. Smoker agreed, quickly pushing Rowan on his left side, holding the short stump of his right leg up as he pressed his chest against his back. He bit into Rowan’s neck as he carefully slid his cock back into his ass. 

“You ready?” Smoker growled. “I could feel you getting close.”

Rowan moaned quietly at the sensation of being filled by Smoker’s length before he responded. The growl that left Smoker’s throat reverberated down Rowan’s spine and it made him shudder. “Yeah, I am. I just really wanted to be held, I guess.”

Smoker’s arms snaked around Rowan’s body, one hand pressing against his chest, the other against his stomach. “How’s this?”

Rowan grinned and his hand travelled to Smoker’s hip. “Can you fuck me so we can find out?”

Smoker chuckled, sending another shiver down Rowan’s spine. He reeled his hips back and pushed forward, filling him up with deep, hard thrusts. Smoker made good on his word and he fucked Rowan through two orgasms before he reached his own, cumming deeply into him before settling down. 

Rowan felt heavenly afterwards. He fully expected Smoker to forget about aftercare so when he got up to clean off, he was surprised to hear Smoker disturb behind him. 

“Where you going? I thought you wanted to be held.”

Rowan looked at Smoker and he couldn’t help a smile form on his face. “If I can be honest, I was expecting you to forget, so I was gonna clean up real fast.”

“Like I said earlier, I have decent bedside manners. But I don’t blame you for wanting to clean up. I’ll be here when you get back.” And sure enough he was when Rowan got out of the shower. When he stepped out, his lover was scrolling through his phone, leaning against the headboard. 

Rowan hopped back to the bed using various pieces of furniture to assist him on his way. Smoker put his phone on the bedside table and he turned to look at the barista. He moved the covers and allowed Rowan to crawl in. The barista settled, sighing happily as the detective held him close to his chest. 

“He really doesn’t do this for you?”

“No.”

Smoker huffed, slightly irritated. 

“What, are you actually angry about that?”

“Not angry. Just annoyed. Dude’s a real dick.”

“Trust me, I know. He won’t let me leave him.”

A large hand ran through Rowan’s hair. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

“No, Smoker. It’s okay. You care a lot about me, and I really appreciate it.”

The older man nuzzled his nose into the younger’s hair. Upon smelling his own shampoo in his hair he smiled. “Okay. I just… want you to be okay. And feel worthy.”

After a small silence, he felt a gentle kiss on his collarbone, snuggling closer to his body. “I do. At this moment, I’m okay. I’m very okay. I feel so worthy.”

“Good. That’s all I want. Now go to sleep. We can talk more in the morning okay?”

Rowan would be lying if he said that wasn’t the best sleep he had ever gotten in Smoker’s arms. He slept deep but didn’t have any dreams that usually disturbed his slumber. On Smoker’s end, his insomnia kept him awake so he spent most of the night watching Rowan sleep and running his long fingers in his hair. The last time he saw the clock was reaching two in the morning. When he opened his eyes, the sun was pouring through his window. 

He somehow ended up on his back, Rowan curled up to the side of his body. His head was resting gently on his shoulder, one arm casually thrown over his torso and hand draped over his chest. He was extremely comfortable despite feeling like he got no sleep. He was tempted to stay in bed, curled up to his lover, but he knew if he didn’t get up now, he wouldn’t get up at all. 

With a sigh, he carefully pulled himself away from Rowan, replacing his body with a pillow. He watched as the smaller man curled up to the pillow, nuzzling his face into it as he stilled once more. 

After gently running a hand in his hair, Smoker pulled on pants and walked to the kitchen. He thought it would only be nice of him to make him some breakfast. As he was preparing coffee, he felt a pair of arms around his torso. He looked down behind him and smiled at the messy brown hair that tickled his skin. 

“Mornin’ sunshine.”

“G’morning, Smoker,” Rowan responded sleepily.

“You feeling okay?”

“That’s the best I’ve ever slept. And you’re making breakfast. This is like a dream. I don’t get this at home.”

Smoker was quiet for a bit. “You should really break up with him, Ro.”

A face was pressed into his back. “God I want to. I want to so badly, but I can’t. I can’t at all. As badly as I want to leave him and have this I… I don’t know what he would do.”

Smoker turned around and he wrapped his arms around the barista. “I’m sorry. I wish there was something I could do.”

“You’re doing everything you can.”

“I like you and care about you so of course I am. I just want to do more.”

“Well… How about you start with breakfast and then maybe a lil more afterwards?” A finger was slowly going down Smoker’s chest, circling around his nipple. Rowan smirked and Smoker mirrored it.

“I can absolutely do that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm struggling to push out chapters. Currently working on another Smoker/Rowan fic to produce serotonin.

**Author's Note:**

> Literally woke up this morning with this idea and I typed all of it in a discord server with some friends within an hour immediately after waking up. I'm dedicated to this idea (for now). I'll probably be working on this slower. Tags will be added with each chapter if anything changes.


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